Silent Recollections
by Chigiri
Summary: Yugi's POV of the Orichalcos series. Chapter 2 As Yugi's soul is temporarily reconstructed into the real world, can he find the strength and the reason to duel the Pharaoh? YamiXYugi
1. Still Believe

A/n: This little short story is gonna be Yugi's POV during the Orichalcos crisis. It's short, but I might add other parts like Yami's POV or something, if I'm up to it. Remember to R & R and tell me what you think!

Disclaimer: Ha ha! Bow to my feet! I have-…my lunch money for school. Nope, I don't have any ownership to Yu-Gi-Oh or it's characters.

_Silent Recollections_

_Chapter 1: Still Believe_

He's betrayed us, and yet I don't understand.

And although I've seen some pretty odd things in my life, I've never gotten completely used to it. I'm used to ancient symbols and monsters with hearts; I'm used to having villains try to conquer the world, or at least stir up a little trouble. I have a 5000—year--old _pharaoh_ occupying part of my soul, for crying out loud. I should be used to everything…

Dammit, and no matter what we go through, I still love my Yami.

I still…

He's betrayed our promise to the Dark Magician Girl.

He's ignored my pleas to not use that cursed card.

He's cast aside our monsters; sacrificed their souls to gain more power to defeat Raphael.

And yet I still…

The pharaoh isn't usually like this. My pharaoh is always kind and compassionate, and whatever the seal is messing with, I'll make sure it won't succeed.

If worse comes to worse, I can always use myself.

But first, what am I going to do?

I'm stuck under this seal. Is this a side-effect of having two souls in one body, or is it something else? To prevent outside interference? I can see you, hear the horrid duel, listen to the silent cries of the monsters the seal has perverted and defiled. I'm worried, yes. Worried for my Yami, worried for my monsters. The poor Black Magician Girl must feel so betrayed now…and I can't help but feel sorry for Raphael.

I'm only half a soul right now…and without me balancing Yami's dark side, I know it's taking a toll. He doesn't sacrifice monsters left and right without _something_ being wrong-and of course, something is. But one thing is clear right now. No matter how common sense is saying he double-crossed me, my heart knows better.

I've been protected by Yami ever since we met. He's always been there when I fell, always took his life on the line when I was in danger. He even vowed to me that he would protect me. I felt so _helpless_ at times when Yami fretted over me. He's done so much for me than I can ever pay him back for…

I cannot and will not fail!

All his, no, **our** monsters, turned on him now, due to Raphael's strategy. It's the end; I feel it. I quickly try to find any source of energy to break the seal…the puzzle! Here goes nothing!

I poured all my strength into the puzzle and slammed it against the glowing hex. It reacted violently in a shower of eerie green light, and I heard the seal crack and shatter into pieces. I'm free! Now, for the next part…

Seeing my precious pharaoh's back, I quickly push him out of the circle. His shocked face strikes something deep within my heart.

"Aibou!"

It's funny, how passive one feels when death is upon you. It's how I feel right now; calm, collected, glad that Yami's safe for now. I gave him a loving smile, as I try to express all my feelings into one, solid look.

_Don't worry about me, it's okay._

_I know you can do this, please don't lose hope._

_I love you…_

But it seems he can only repeat my name in horror and fear, with the Orichalcos seal still etched onto his handsome face. He knows what happens after this. He knows the outcome of our twisted game.

"It only needs one of us, so I'm letting it take me instead." I still said with a smile, but seeing him in pain like this…is almost too much to bear. Leaving him with half a soul would be cruel, but I know he'll make it in the end. Because my pharaoh is strong.

"Yugi!"

Too late.

It's odd. I've had my grandpa's soul taken away in a card. I had an ancient Tomb robber try to kill me numerous times. My once-bullies Jounochi and Honda are now my best friends. I've seen a lot of things in my lifetime that shouldn't normally have happened.

"I believe in you." I called one last time, before the Great Beast snatched me up from my other half. I don't care; let it take me and rip my soul to shreds. It'll come as no surprise to me.

But I still can't believe I love my pharaoh.


	2. Testing the Pain

A/N: Yeah, second part to this. The script isn't exactly perfect, but I tried to incorporate both the Japanese and the English translation in without being too redundant and all. That and I'm a drama/angst freak ;; Oh, and I'm also not quite sure of the spelling of some card names. This is what I get for working on this at 3 in the morning…

_Silent Recollections_

_Chapter 2: Testing the Pain_

You know, it's almost like…sleeping for a time. Not a peaceful sleep, but a long, uncomfortable state of nothing. Is this what it is like to truly die? Everything around you blends into everything else until something startling happens. Time here is like a fragile, thin, silver thread; it is easy to miss yet precious enough to find yourself wanting it. Until then, you bide your time, dreaming of reality.

For the most part, this is how I kept track of Yami while being trapped in the seal.

He wouldn't talk to anyone. He wouldn't sleep properly at night, waking up drenched in sweat and muttering my name over and over. I've come to realize that the only reason he eats is that it is my _body_ he's in. I'm amazed that he hasn't passed out in exhaustion.

Over and over again I wished for a way to help my friends. Goodness knows what trouble Jou and Honda would get into, and Raphael had not lain off his search since he began. The train Yami and Anzu boarded crashed and fell into the river. I'm glad that an old man and a little girl pulled them out in time. For some reason, they look just a little familiar…

But that is not important. What is happening _now_ is.

I do not know how I snuck around the Orichalcos seal, nor do I know where we are. But I felt like I was being built, part by painful part, stacked up until I reached the real world. And when I opened my eyes to his call, I did not feel the least bit happy. All the negative emotions I should've felt when I sacrificed my soul hit me. Hard.

He reached for me. He ran towards me. He passed through me. He called my name so desperately that any normal person's soul should have shook to the core.

I…

I did not care.

"You…came all the way here, just for me?" I asked tonelessly, looking over my shoulder. Unaffected, he explained our lost battle with Raphael.

"Without you with me, I'm becoming an evil person. Maybe…maybe he was right. Maybe I am the reason for the destruction of Egypt. I succumbed to my inner darkness…and you had to pay the price. It should be me locked away in the seal."

I had sacrificed my entire **life** for him and all he can do is bitch about it to me! All I wanted was for him to love and respect me…and here he was, mocking me. Was this the reason he was here in the first place? Am I just some worthless rag-doll that he could throw out whenever? _Couldn't he see that I was hurt?_ He pitied me for his own stupid mistake!

"Did you come here just to complain?" I barked back harshly. "What good is that now? I'm the one locked away, not _you_!" And I could tell it stung him. His hurt expression pierced me, and although I was furious, I could tell that something was not right.

"…I'm sorry." My _pharaoh_ muttered, still wearing that pained face. But it only rekindled my fury and I barked at him again.

"The last thing I need is your _pity_ pharaoh!" I brushed past him coldly.

"What are you doing?"

Suddenly I wanted to duel him. I wanted to show him the anger and hurt I felt. I _needed_ him to realize what he had done. If he understood nothing about betrayal, what better way to learn than to have you other half go against you?

"You said it yourself, didn't you?" I sinisterly replied, "Your spirit should be locked away with mine!"

I then knew where these feelings came from. Before, when I was taken away by the seal, we were together. I controlled the darkness inside him, and he brought out my purest of light. But now that the evil was released, I collected that darkness full-force. This was my duty as the lighter half of our soul.

Just as he shared my light, I shared his dark. Just as all halves of a soul should be.

And I had yet to give him a lesson in sharing.

"I'm going to do just that." I finished, and a duel disk formed on my arm.

"Wait," Looking trapped, he backed up a few steps. "You misunderstood me."

"Are you going to take back what you said now? I deserve to be locked away? Maybe _you_ need to take responsibility for your actions!" I cried angrily.

"Yugi!"

Scowling crossly, I glared at him with all the rage I could muster.

"_Too late_, pharaoh, now stand by!"

My pharaoh was pinned. He couldn't run away from me and we both knew it.

And the duel began.

With a smirk, I drew my hand and started to form a strategy. Since my cards weren't technically real, and Yami's evil was inside me, it meant two things. One, our hand would be exactly the same, right down to the order of our cards.

It also meant that I had that cursed card somewhere in my deck.

And chances were, he wasn't going to play that any time soon, so I could bide my time until I could think of something good.

"I'll play this card face down! All right, it's your turn pharaoh, unless you're too _scared_." I goaded him.

"…If I must."

He was getting into the game now, like so many other times we dueled together. My pharaoh never could resist a challenge. Even if it was against me, I was assured that he would play at least to his full potential.

"I play Gazelle, King of Mythical Beasts! Attack his face down card!" He commanded. Without hesitation, the monster ripped through my card, revealing it to be a mirror copy of the Mythical Beast itself.

This would do me no good. I needed a way to get rid of our similar hands if I was going to survive.

"Yugi, wait! We're playing the same cards, aren't we!"

I smiled mischievously and drew my card.

"Let's find out. I play another card face down!" I stated, and it came to him again.

"I play Polymerization and Berfomett to form Chimera the Mythical Beast! Then I'll play Alpha the Magnet warrior. Attack his face down card!"

And the magnet Warrior struck my defense, obliterating it completely. I braced myself for the oncoming attack from Chimera, which wasted no time in taking my life points.

And since I had no real body, my soul took the toll instead. It felt like a pounding ache that raced through me. Physical pain was nothing compared to this.

Biting back a groan, I decided to take my chances with that one card.

"When you defeated my Sand-gin, you activated it's special ability, allowing me to take a monster from my deck and put it in my hand. I'll play this face down, then I'll play card destruction! That way, you can't cheat anymore!"

I didn't play this card often, since it always proved to be more of a hindrance to me than help, but maybe, just maybe, it would aid me this one time. Looking at my new hand, I wryly laughed on the inside as _that_ card lay helplessly on the side.

And this duel became so much more than I thought it was. It wasn't about revenge…

I ended up being fate's bitch again.

"Yugi! Why are you acting like this!"

Chuckling half- heartedly, I lowered my gaze, unable to look into his eyes.

"You don't get it, do you? We're the same…" And anger boiled up inside of me like never before. I shot him an accusing glare.

"So the darkness that is in your heart is also in mine!"

He apologized to me full heartedly, and again I told him it was too late. And the words tumbled out of my mouth before I could stop.

"Now I know who you really are-just an evil pharaoh who only thinks for himself! Face it," I cried out, and through my anger, the hurt of betrayal stung much worse. I was almost on the verge of tears. "You didn't care what happened to me just as long as you had power!"

I took _that_ card from my hand and held it out, examining it. It was really this card's fault to begin with. And through Yami's pleas, I noticed that there was nothing to be angry about at all.

But Yami still needed to be taught a lesson. And it had to be taught the hard way.

"This duel gives you the chance to look at yourself from the outside, and the only way to do that…is with the Seal of Orichalcos."

"Yugi, no!"

It was too late. I had placed the card down on the field and the ring around me surged forth. Unimaginable power shot through my soul as the seal took effect.

Everything I once thought was forgotten as the power threatened to wipe out even my sanity. The duel became a blur of action as I summoned monsters and sacrificed them effortlessly.

So as I used Catapult Turtle to pass through Yami's Swords of Revealing Light, I knew that everything was over.

Yami cried out as if he was in pain and activated his face down card, Divine Wind. I should have realized that before, but due to the seal's influence, I foolishly walked into the trap.

But at the moment I realized I had been defeated, I was free of the darkness, and the power of the Orichalcos seal. And I had never felt more relieved in my life. Even when the blast shook me so hard that I couldn't scream.

"Yugi! Yugi," My yami took me in his arms, and that same look on his face returned. "Speak to me, please…"

"You did it. You passed the test…"

"Test? You planned this all along!" He cried. I can't imagine what it would be like to lose your other half twice. I wanted to take his pain away, but I only had enough strength to place my hand over his duel disk.

"By defeating me, you defeated the darkness within you." I gave him a tired smile, and his warmth reminded me that even though we were apart, our bond, both as our souls and our love, still remained. I could trust Yami fully.

"So what happens now?" He whispered brokenly. My grip tightened a fraction on his duel disk.

"Remember, you're not alone…our duel monsters are with you…I am with you…don't give up." I flashed him a pain- wrenched smile as my soul burst into millions of spheres of light.

I heard him…I heard him call for me.

"_I'll set you free! I promise!"_


End file.
